Restraints are used in passenger seats to protect a passenger from injury during impacts. Passenger seats, such as aircraft seats, may use a seatbelt to reduce the amount of forward excursion of an occupant during an impact. For example, use of a Y-belt may provide a more direct transfer of loads through the seatbelt. A traditional seatbelt generally includes two attachment points where the seatbelt attaches to the seat structure, one on each side of the occupant. A Y-belt includes an additional attachment point on each side of the occupant, resulting in two attachment points where the seatbelt attaches to the seat on each side of the occupant. The additional attachment points on a Y-belt are generally located higher than the standard seat belt attachment points. These additional attachment points can create a more direct path for the load to be transferred to the seat structure and can reduce the forward excursion of an occupant during an impact, such as during a crash scenario.
Current y-belt designs use fixed attachment points that cannot be changed or adjusted once a seat has been designed and certified. Often, these fixed attachment points are designed to accommodate a 50th percentile male passenger. However, when a child or a 5th percentile female passenger occupies the seat, the lower belt portion slacks, creating an increased amount of tension in the top portion of the seat belt and increasing the load applied to the abdomen soft tissues, therefore reducing safety.